James Whall/Star-Ledger Marketing

Best case scenario: Yes – The Nets capitalize on the void left by the Dodgers and a rich basketball tradition. From Fly Williams, to World B. Free, to Bernard King, basketball has long-been a source of immense community pride in Brooklyn (If you’re really interested in the Brooklyn basketball culture, check out Rick Telander’s Heaven is a Playground and Darcy Frey’s The Last Shot). If increased merchandise sales and website traffic are any indication, Brooklyn has thus far embraced the Nets. Take a look at the OKC Thunder: they left Seattle after essentially tanking three seasons in favor of building for the future and now have both a winning team and one of the most dedicated fan bases in the NBA (Jonathan Tjarks of sbnation.com provides an in-depth explanation of this in “LeBron James, Kentucky, and the AAU Revolution”).

Worst case scenario: The Nets become the pre-Griffin Clippers of New York. Die-hard basketball fans in Brooklyn are for the most part Knicks fans. Whereas the Knicks can afford the luxury of losing and still maintain a loyal fan base, the Nets simply cannot. Once the idea of a Brooklyn franchise ceases to become a novelty, drumming up local pride can only go so far if the team doesn’t win. As Colin Stephenson of The Star-Ledger reports, ten Nets stand to become free-agents this summer, including star point guard Deron Williams.

I definitely see the allure of Brookyln. Even through the J. Kidd Era the Nets had trouble consistently attracting fans. I just wonder what would have happened had the Nets fully committed to New Jersey — particularly with a move to the Prudential Center on the table. As the Devils have shown, it's not to easy to develop a fan base under the New Jersey name but certainly possible.